American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Zacks Research downgraded shares of American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. B. Riley Financial lifted their target price on shares of American Public Education from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Public Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of American Public Education from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Barrington Research lifted their price objective on shares of American Public Education from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Lake Street Capital lifted their price objective on shares of American Public Education from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Public Education has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.38.

American Public Education Trading Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:APEI opened at $45.13 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $825.88 million, a PE ratio of 18.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.38. American Public Education has a 52-week low of $28.34 and a 52-week high of $61.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $52.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.77. The company has a quick ratio of 2.98, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $171.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $170.88 million. American Public Education had a return on equity of 15.56% and a net margin of 6.84%.American Public Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.480-2.790 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.180-0.290 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that American Public Education will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Thomas Beckett sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total value of $108,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 52,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,817,288. The trade was a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 10.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of APEI. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in American Public Education by 5,909.5% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,241 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of American Public Education by 84.1% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 738 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of American Public Education by 40.5% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 552 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 96.5% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 259.6% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,000 after acquiring an additional 3,809 shares in the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about American Public Education

Here are the key news stories impacting American Public Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: APEI recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.52 per share, exceeding analysts’ $0.36 consensus estimate, while revenue of $171.73 million was slightly above expectations. The results helped drive an initial share-price gap higher. American Public Education Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Northland Securities raised its FY2026 EPS forecast to $2.58 from $2.53 and its FY2027 estimate to $3.06 from $3.05, signaling modestly improved expectations for future profitability.
• Positive Sentiment: The company unveiled an AI-powered student lifecycle platform being developed with Salesforce. The platform is intended to provide personalized support, proactive advising and connected student services, potentially improving student engagement and retention over time. American Public Education Unveils AI-Powered Student Lifecycle Platform
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks recently characterized APEI as a strong value stock, which could attract value-oriented investors, although the latest update does not provide a new price target or earnings revision. Why American Public Education Is a Strong Value Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded American Public Education from “strong buy” to “hold,” reducing a potentially important source of buying support. Zacks Research
• Negative Sentiment: Northland Securities cut its Q3 2026 EPS estimate to $0.24 from $0.41, indicating weaker expected near-term earnings. Although its Q4 forecast increased to $0.87 from $0.81, the Q3 reduction is likely weighing more heavily on sentiment today.

About American Public Education

American Public Education, Inc operates as a provider of online postsecondary education, offering degree and certificate programs through its wholly owned subsidiary, American Public University System (APUS). The company designs and delivers a broad range of undergraduate and graduate programs in fields such as business administration, information technology, criminal justice, homeland security, health sciences, and education. Its curriculum is developed to meet the needs of working adults, military personnel, veterans and civilian students seeking flexible, career-relevant learning opportunities.

APUS is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and employs a proprietary online learning platform that supports asynchronous instruction, digital course materials and interactive learning tools.